historical method

Examples of historical method in the following topics:

• The Imperfect Historical Record

  • Historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use primary sources and other evidence (including the evidence of archaeology) to research and write historical accounts of the past.
  • Historians continue to debate what aspects and practices of investigating primary sources should be considered, and what constitutes a primary source when developing the most effective historical method.
  • The question of the nature, and even the possibility, of a sound historical method is so central that it has been continuously raised in the philosophy of history as a question of epistemology.
  • Primary sources may remain in private hands or are located in archives, libraries, museums, historical societies, and special collections.
  • Traditionally, historians attempt to answer historical questions through the study of written documents and oral accounts.

• Temporal Classification

  • Re-measurement requires the application of the temporal method.
  • A method of foreign currency translation that uses exchange rates based on the time assetsand liabilities are acquired or incurred, is required.
  • The exchange rate used also depends on the method of valuation that is used.
  • Assets and liabilities valued at current costs use the current exchange rate and those that use historical exchange rates are valued at historical costs.
  • Identify when it would be necessary to use the temporal method on the balance sheet

• Methods for Researching Human Development

  • Three research methods used include the experimental, correlational, and case study approach.
  • Also, because members of a cohort all experience historical events unique to their generation, apparently normative developmental trends may only be universal to the cohort itself.
  • This generally requires fewer resources than the longitudinal method, and because the individuals come from different cohorts, shared historical events are not as unique.
  • However, this method may not be the most effective way to study differences between participants, as these differences may result not from their different ages but from their exposure to different historical events.
  • While much more resource-intensive, this method results in a clearer distinction between changes that can be attributed to individual or historical environment and changes that are truly universal.

• Depreciation

  • Several standard methods of computing depreciation expense may be used, such as fixed percentage, straight line, and declining balance methods.
  • Depreciation is generally recognized under historical cost systems of accounting.
  • One popular accelerated method is the declining-balance method.
  • Under this method the book value is multiplied by a fixed rate.
  • Sum-of-years' digits is a depreciation method that results in a more accelerated write-off than straight line, but less than the declining-balance method.

• Determining the Research Design

  • Another distinction can be made between quantitative methods and qualitative methods.
  • Quantitative methods are generally useful when a researcher seeks to study large-scale patterns of behavior, while qualitative methods are often more effective when dealing with interactions and relationships in detail .
  • Qualitative methods are often used to develop a deeper understanding of a particular phenomenon.
  • While quantitative methods involve experiments, surveys, secondary data analysis, and statistical analysis, qualitatively oriented sociologists tend to employ different methods of data collection and hypothesis testing, including participant observation, interviews, focus groups, content analysis, and historical comparison .
  • Even in the same study a researcher may employ multiple methods.

• Methods

  • A methods section is a detailed description of how a study was researched and conducted.
  • Your methods section should include a full, technical explanation of how you conducted your research and found your results.
  • The methods section should be as thorough as possible since the goal is to give readers all the information necessary for them to recreate your experiments.
  • The following is an example of a methods section of a scientific paper:
  • "The study focused on a three-hundred-mile stretch of the Columbia River, which has been the stretch of the river most studied historically.

• Cost of Equipment

  • The cost of equipment is the item's purchase price, or historical cost, plus other initial costs related to acquisition and asset use.
  • The equipment's cost is calculated by adding the item's purchase price, or historical cost, to the other costs related to acquiring the asset.
  • Historical cost also includes delivery and installation of the asset, as well as the dismantling and removal of the asset when it is no longer in service.
  • Since accounting standards state that an asset should be carried at the net book value, equipment is listed on the balance sheet at its historical cost amount.
  • A company is free to decide what depreciation method to use on the equipment.

• Gross Profit Method

  • The gross profit method uses the previous year's average gross profit margin to calculate the value of the inventory.
  • There are two methods to estimate inventory cost, the retail inventory method and the gross profit method.
  • Use projected gross profit ratio or historical gross profit ratio whichever is more accurate and reliable.
  • The following is an example on how to calculate ending inventory using the gross profit method.
  • Explain how a company would use the Gross Profit Method to value inventory

• Methods of Depreciation

  • There are various methods that can calculate depreciation expense for the period; the method used should reflect the asset's business use.
  • Some of the most common methods used to calculate depreciation are straight-line, units-of-production, sum-of-years digits, and double-declining balance, an accelerated depreciation method.
  • The straight-line formula used to calculate depreciation expense is: (asset's historical cost - the asset's estimated salvage value) / the asset's useful life.
  • This method is typically applied to assets used in the production line.
  • Sum-of-years' digits is a depreciation method that results in a more accelerated write-off than straight line, but less accelerated than that of the double-declining balance method.

• Limitations of the Balance Sheet

  • The three limitations to balance sheets are assets being recorded at historical cost, use of estimates, and the omission of valuable non-monetary assets.
  • Fixed assets are shown in the balance sheet at historical cost less depreciation up to date.
  • The historical cost will equal the carrying value only if there has been no change recorded in the value of the asset since acquisition.
  • Historical cost is criticized for its inaccuracy since it may not reflect current market valuation.
  • Different methods of depreciation affect the carrying value of an asset on balance sheets.